Bhirawa Anoraga, Najib Kailani, Aflahah Misbah

Cultivating Reflective Islam

Introduction

Cultivating reflective islam. Explore Ngaji Filsafat, a growing movement cultivating reflective, pluralist Islam among urban youth in Indonesia. It offers interpretive resources for navigating everyday challenges beyond traditional piety.

Abstract

This study investigates the growing popularity of Ngaji Filsafat, a phenomenon cultivating a reflective Islam that offers an alternative study group for young Muslims in Yogyakarta and beyond. This mosque-based gathering eschews conventional texts like the Qur’an, instead exploring ideas from thinkers both Muslim and non-Muslim, from Greek philosophers to contemporary intellectuals. Its rise presents an anomaly within the conservative-turn thesis, given its broad appeal and promotion of pluralist teachings. Drawing on observations and in-depth interviews with initiators and attendees, the study finds its appeal lies not in aspirations for heightened piety or religious activism. Rather, for urban Muslim youth, it functions as a space offering interpretive resources for navigating everyday challenges within a neoliberal context. These findings highlight the need for alternative frameworks, beyond piety-centered or conservative-pluralist paradigms, to understand diverse Islamic expressions in digitalizing post–New Order Indonesia. Furthermore, against scholarship emphasizing the state’s coercive role in civic pluralism, this study illuminates how non-state actors mainstream pluralist Islamic engagements.

Full Text

Comments

You need to be logged in to post a comment.